The newly recruited trainees into different programs at the ERuDeF Institute of Biodiversity and Non-profit Studies (IBiNS) have successfully kicked off classes for the 2013/2014 academic year. An orientation session which held on November 4, 2013 officially flung the doors of the Institute open for the new academic year. Opening the orientation session, the Proprietor of the Institute, Louis Nkembi welcomed and lauded the trainees for having chosen to venture into a field of environmental studies. He assured them that they have made the right decision to contribute to saving nature. In a presentation, the Acting Director of Administration for the Institute, Ms. Seemndze, schooled the incoming trainees on the general code of conduct of the Institute. Among other things, she insisted on academic honesty, personal integrity, punctuality, the appropriate use of the institute’s equipment including books, computers and other electronics. For this academic year, the two major and umbrella disciplines being run at the Institute for the academic year include, the Integrated Conservation Management and Non-profit Studies and Fundraising. Trainees will specialize either in Biodiversity Conservation, Agroforestry and NGO Studies and Fundraising.

The highpoint of the day was experience sharing between the incoming trainees and the lecturers. Some lecturers shared their experiences through school and what had motivated them to specialize in certain fields. One of the Lecturers, Ms. Mojoko congratulated the students for making a choice that will leave them with gainful skills that will permit them to be self-employed after school. On their part, the trainees were excited about the fact that though they had been discouraged by friends that they could not get into certain fields or professions due to their subject specializations in High school, the Institute has provided them with an opportunity to fulfill their dreams with their proposed broad based educational system.

One of the trainees Betana explained that he was motivated to come to IBiNS because of the bitter lessons he learnt from a frustrated relative who could not get a job after obtaining a regular university law degree. “That was what pushed me to opt for a specialized course, a course which can earn me employment even if everything else fails” Betana went on. Classes immediately began that same afternoon after the orientation session.

Ita Nawom